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DRAFT FOR ATTORNEY REVIEW — NOT FINAL

Lena Robinson v. Diamond Housing Corporation, 463 F.2d 853 (1972)

Citation
Lena Robinson v. Diamond Housing Corporation, 463 F.2d 853 (1972)
Parent Document
Lena Robinson v. Diamond Housing Corporation, 463 F.2d 853 (1972)
Jurisdiction
DC (municipal)
Effective Date
1972-04-03

Other Sections in This Document (189)

Full Text

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58
Diamond Housing, however, presents a somewhat different version of the facts. Diamond claims that Mrs. Robinson was forced to leave the premises when her own failure to provide heat caused all the pipes in the building to freeze. If this version is correct, then the controversy is indeed moot. The tenant's voluntary relinquishment of possession ends the case or controversy when, as here, the landlord makes no claim for back rent. See Gaddis v. Dixie Realty Co., 136 U.S.App.D.C. 403, 420 F.2d 245 (1969). While it is true that Mrs. Robinson's departure under the circumstances described by Diamond might in some sense be thought involuntary, the landlord should not be held responsible for the tenant's misconduct. See Javins v. First National Realty Corp., supra, 138 U.S.App.D.C. at 380 n. 62, 428 F.2d at 1082 n. 62. A tenant who makes her own apartment uninhabitable can, for our purposes, be taken as having voluntarily surrendered possession, thus mooting out the controversy.